This is the "regular story" version of my Doctors of Doom fan rewrite, which might be better for those who don't like reading things in screenplay format.

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Thunk! The moss-covered rock hit the chain once more. Murdoch, sweating, grunted and raised it over his head again. He was a big kat, muscles bulging through the prison-issue white shirt and plain brown pants he was wearing.

He and four other convicts had just gotten done escaping from an Enforcer substation located on the outskirts of the city, where they'd been awaiting transport and fled into the depths of Megakat Swamp. Thunk!! The rock came down, destroying the last of the chains linking him and his four cohorts together. Satisfied, he tossed the rock aside with a splash.

"Boys, we're a chain gang no longer," he said. "Now we're just a plain old gang. And I'm the leader. Any objections?"

There were none. His nickname during his frequent prison sentences was "Murderin' Murdoch." Nobody knew if he ever actually had killed anyone, but he looked tough enough that nobody really ever questioned him.

"Good, now come on!"

The five of them turned and trudged through the swamp. Although Murdoch was confident they were home free, his fellow prisoners were of the nervous, jumpy sort.

"Hey, Murd, how come we're in Megakat Swamp again?" asked one of the other cons.

"'Cause, genius, the Enforcers will never think to look for us this place!" Murdoch replied.

As they went on, the water they were wading through gradually got deeper and slimier. Something slithered down from a tree. It was a large snake with three glowing eyes. It opened its mouth and hissed at the convicts. Startled, one of them grabbed the three-eyed reptile by the neck and flung it away. Landing in the water with a splash, it swam off.

The further they proceeded the less leaves there were on the trees, and the larger, more deformed, gnarled and twisted they became. The escaped prisoners had found their way into the heart of the swamp, known to those who lived on its edges as "the Dead Forest." It was a polluted, sludgy, nearly lifeless area with huge trees rising up out of the fetid water like skyscrapers. They looked unhealthy, sick, dead yet somehow still living.

From the largest tree of all, one of the convicts saw what appeared to be a light shining through a kind of window. "Look! I see a light ahead!"

Murdoch squinted in the darkness. He saw it, too. "Someone's crazy enought to live here...?"

"What if it's, y'know... him?" asked another con, terrified.

The one who'd first spotted the light seemed scared, too. "Y-Yeah, Murd? What if it's D-D-Dr. Viper...?"

He trudged on. As they passed by some of the smaller trees, each con broke off a large, thick branch to use as a cudgel. They finally arrived at the base of the tree, which Murdoch estimated to be at least twelve stories tall. Alongside it was a crude dock of sorts, onto which the five cons climbed.

"I don't see any entrance..." said the third convict.

Neither did Murdoch at first. Turning, he noticed a ladder hanging down and looked up. It went up to a large knot in the side of the tree serving as a natural balcony of sorts. He smirked.

"Up, dummy," replied Murdoch, gesturing to the ladder with his cudgel.

He went up first. Lead by example, he liked to say. He was followed by three of the other four convicts, but the second convict, the one who'd been so creeped out by the three-eyed snake, lingered on the dock.

"Are you guys sure this is such a good idea?" he asked.

"If you're such a scaredy-kat, stay down there!" Murdoch called down.

He and the other three continued climbing.

The second con, sighing, scratched his head, growing more worried by the minute. "Be careful!" he called after them. "W-Watch out for possums and stuff!"

The knot had a knothole. A deep one. It served as a kind of tunnel into the rotted, hollowed-out interior of the tree, which was honeycombed with different rooms and chambers, most of which, it turned out, were empty. Brandishing their tree branch cudgels, Murdoch and his three companions proceeded deeper into the interior, following the source of the faint light they'd seen coming through the window.

As they passed the walls, enormous, thickly-veined eyes opened, turning to watch them go. But each time a one of them sensed they were being watched and turned, the eyes closed in time... only to reopen and continue staring at them as they headed off.

The group entered the main hollow of the tree, which seemed to serve as a living area. There was a ratty couch, two armchairs, and a crooked, ramshackle coffee table. Aside from this, the room was entirely given over to lab equipment of all things, with a huge worktable covered with flasks, beakers and retorts. Murdoch was baffled. His companions were becoming angry, impatient and scared.

He heard the sound of movement. The four kats turned to see a figure lying on a cot across the room, its back to them. A blanket was pulled up over it. Murdoch smirked, his confidence returning. The owner, he thought.

"Must be the owner," he told his cohorts. "I'll go wake 'im up and ask if he's got anything worth takin'."

Another con grabbed his sleeve. Murdoch looked down at the hand grabbing him, then up at its owners face, which was deeply entrenched on the right cheek by a knife scar. He was annoyed at this challenge to his authority.

"Relax," said Murdoch, jerking his arm free. He smacked his cudgel into the open palm of his hand. "This old swamp hermit ain't gonna give us any trouble."

Nearby, the other two convicts were examining the chemistry apparatus on the table, watching as the chemicals heated and bubbling over bunsen burners and flowed through spiralling glass tubes. It was beginning to dawn on them just where they were. Murdoch was wrong. Dr. Viper didn't live in the sewers...

"M-Murd," said the third con, "hey, listen..."

But Murdoch was already at the cot. He gave the sleeping figure a poke with his cudgel. It shifted a little. There was a buzzing noise.

"Wake up, you old weirdo!" he growled.

Upon getting no response, he reached down to grab him even as the con with the scar, wary, rushed forward in an effort to stop him, but it was too late; Murdoch grabbed the sleeping figure's shoulder and shook him. He started to demand to know whether he had any valuables or tools, when suddenly the kat in the cot rolled over to reveal a hideous sight. Murdoch gasped aloud and backed up as the figure rose from the cot.

He had brown fur and bulging compound green eyes like a fly. Two twitching antennae sprouted from his forehead. There were deep scars radiating out from the center of his face. He was clad in only the ragged remains of clothing, including a filthy lab coat with the sleeves ripped off, a threadbare dress shirt open to the waist and loose pants that looked far too large on his sticklick legs. Huge membranous wings buzzed and flapped behind him.

The creature that had once been MASA's Dr. Harley Street was most displeased at having his rest so rudely disturbed. So stunned was Murdoch by the half kat, half Ci-Kat-A's appearance that he just stood there as Street grabbed his arm and bit into it using his thick mandibles. Yelping, Murdoch dropped his makeshift cudgel and collapsed to the floor, writing in pain as a fire shot through him and burned its way into his mind. He squeezed his eyes shut.

The scarred convict lunged forward, swinging his tree branch like a baseball bat, but Street grabbed it, yanking it from the startled con's grasp. He snapped it in half, then grabbed its owner and bit him. Crying out as he, too experienced the agonizing pain, he fell down to writh painfully alongside Murdoch. Slowly, their twitching and thrashing stopped as they understood. They'd been chosen to serve a higher power. Opening their eyes to reveal they had become green and insectoid like Street's, they rose slowly from the floor almost robotically.

From across the room, the remaining cons dropped their branches and turned to run. Just then, a green, striped kat with spiky black hair and a loosefitting lab coat entered, carrying a kerosene lantern. A thick, snakelike tail lashed angrily behind him.

"What'sss all this ruckusss?" demanded an annoyed Dr. Viper.

At the sight of the intruders, he became enraged. His tail whipped around, hitting one of them. He was sent flying into the wall. Hitting it, he slid down into a dazed heap. The remaining convict whimpered in fear as the tail now slowly encircled him and squeezed him, lifting him up off of his feet.

"Intrudersss, eh...?" mused Viper, calmer now that he'd dispensed punishment and had the remaining would-be thief in his coils. "I know jussst what to do with the likes of you!"

Dr. Street walked over to the unconscious convict over by the wall, bending over him. He bit his shoulder. What was going on? wondered the con in Viper's grip. This was like some horrible nightmare. "Wh-What's happening?!"

"Nothing that need concern you," Dr. Viper said, hissing soothing, like a lover. "In a moment, I assure you you won't care one little bit."

Using his tail, he held the squirming convict out towards Street. Rising from his task, Street turned menacingly towards the last remaining normal kat, as his bitten victim rose, bug-eyed, stiff, like a zombie behind him.

"You're going to be jussst like your friendesss!" Viper hissed. "Isssn't that nice?" Turning to Dr. Street, he said, "Doctor, if you pleassse?"

"With pleasure, Doctor," replied the bug-eyed former MASA scientist, with a slight "buzz" to his voice.

He advanced towards the held-out convict who loosed a terrified scream.

Still waiting outside for his friends, the convict on the dock heard the scream and jumped. He turned to look up the ladder he'd last seen his companions ascend.

"Guys?" he called. "You okay up there?"

He heard a bubbling sound behind him and turned. There was a stirring amidst the murky swamp water. An enormous mushroom cap topped with feline ears broke the scummy surface and started towards the dock like a shark fin. There was a sudden eruption of water and a hideous roar, and the convict, holding his useless branch "weapon," had a brief impression of glowing red eyes and an enormous mouth rushing towards him, before everything went black. He felt himself slurped up and tumbled down into fleshy darkness, his scream abruptly cut off. A thick, wet belch issued forth from Dr. Viper's mushroom monster.

~*~

Burke and Murray Schlepper sat on the hood of a beat up old station wagon, which was parked facing a sort of thrown together obstacle course. The normally rugged dirt ground of the salvage yard had been smoothed into a path that snaked its way around various junk piles. At various points on this makeshift track there were enormous, age-pitted, weather-beaten concrete dividers and piles of dirt, some with ramps made from plywood boards, some without, and tunnels made using whatever happened to be at hand.

Burke reached into a cooler sitting next to him that contained more water than ice and grabbed a bottle of new grape-flavored Kitty Kola. Popping the cap using a fridge magnet bottle opener, he handed it to his brother. Murray took it and sipped it. Both brothers were wearing sleeveless tank tops and shorts due to the summer heat, which seemed to beat down on the salvage yard the hardest. Murray belched. Burke grabbed himself a bottle of soda from the cooler as Chance Furlong zoomed into view on rollerblades, followed by Jake Clawson right on his heels. The duo came literally flying into view, sailing through the air, having ramped off one of the plywood boards.

Chance slalomed around some strategically-placed obstacles consisting of random junk, giving a big yell. Behind him, Jake just as expertly navigated the obstacles. Both of them were stripped to the waist in the hot afternoon sun, and aside from sticker-covered rollerblading helmets, elbow and knee pads, the two were in naught but small shorts.

As they skated past them, Burke and Murray cheered them on, holding up their soda bottles. The mechanics' usual nemeses were observing their little race for lack of anything better to do on such a hot day, and after working alongside one another for so long, tensions between the four of them had cooled somewhat, in sharp contrast to the summer heat.

Murray was betting Chance would win. "Woo! Yeah! Chaaaaance!"

His brother had other ideas. "Go Jake! Go Jake!" yelled Burke.

Although sincere, their cheering was a little halfhearted. They were growing a little weary of the spectacle. The four of them had made plans to go to the park later that day, and the park had trees. And trees meant shade. The Schleppers were eager for their charges to hurry up and finish the race so they could get going. But Chance and Jake pushed ahead, as usual forcing themselves to their personal limits in an attempt to outdo one another.

"These new Turbo Rollerblades are radical, buddy!" said Chance, panting but still bristling with stamina, sweat pouring down his naked torso.

"Yeah," said Jake, also panting and sweating, but showing no signs of tiring, either, "they're gonna give me one more way to beat your tail!"

Chance glanced behind himself for a moment in disbelief. Did he hear correctly? He saw the shirtless Jake smirking as he gained on him, closing the distance. Unconcerned, he turned his head back around: gotta keep my eyes on where I'm going, he reminded himself.

"Dream on, buddy!"

They came up on a concrete divider laying across the track. He hunkered down. Behind him, so did Jake. He zoomed around some empty, rusty oil drums and as he reached the divider, his leg muscles strained and he launched himself through the air, sailing over the obstacle, graceful despite his bulk in comparison to Jake, who after swinging 'round the metal drums didn't need to squat so low to gain the height necessary to clear the divider; his leg muscles tensed and he shot into the air like a coiled spring. Still airborne, he flew towards Chance.

Watching from nearby, Murray took a gulp of his soda and elbowed Burke in the ribs, pointing. Burke was struggling to uncap his soda bottle using the bottle opener, but paused to look up, gasping. It seemed for an instant that Jake was going to hit Chance, but instead, the smaller, thinner kat grabbed Chance's shoulders and swung his legs up, effectively using his own momentum plus pushing down on Chance's shoulders to clear his opponent entirely, landing a few feet in front of him, now in the lead.

He grinned and gave a thumbs-up back to a surprised Chance. "I like this dream!"

Burke and Murray cheered. Burke pumped his arms, not realizing he was shaking his unopened soda bottle.

Chance and Jake ceme up to a tunnel made from a hollowed out 747 engine. Arms behind his back, graceful as a figure skater, Jake navigated the tunnel with his eyes closed, zooming around the cylinder, from the bottom, to the sides, over the ceiling, then down the other side without even trying.

Seeing this made Chance angry. He zoomed through the engine without any fancy stunts, too mad to show off. Besides, they were out of sight of Burke and Murray, so there was nobody to show off to.

"Crud," he grumbled to himself, "let's see what these things can really do!"

Each of the two had a small remote control device in their hand, and he pressed the button on his his. Miniature rocket boosters popped out of the sides of his rollerblades. They ignited, and with a burst of sudden speed, Chance rocketed forwards. He would've lost his helmet if it hadn't been strapped firmly to his head. Not that it didn't make a valiant attempt to free itself at the sudden, shocking speed at which its wearer was suddenly now traveling, the chinstrap stretching, helmet being tugged along behind. He shot past a startled Jake in a blue, trailing dust from his rollerblades... and smoke, Jake noticed with some alarm.

The rollerblades' wheels were spinning rapidly. Too rapidly. They were overheating and the friction, even against the dirt, was chiseling them down to little nubs. Chance's triumph turned to sudden worry as he wobbled uncontrollably.

"Chance, slow down!" Jake yelled after him.

"I caaaaaaaaaaaaaan't!" Chance screamed.

He 'rounded the corner of an obstacle, having gone the entire circuit, and actually sailed wildly out of control off of the track, trailing fire. He headed flailing towards the old station wagon where Burke and Murray were sitting. Murray yelped and jumped off. Burke had returned to struggling with the bottle opener, and didn't notice the incoming Chance, despite the screaming. His battle with the soda bottle had completely consumed him.

Reaching up, Murray grabbed his brother and yanked him off the hood, right as Chance was about to hit the front fender. However, he leaped up in an effort to clear the car, but didn't quite make it; his butt bounced off the hood, jostling the cooler. Propelled up by the impact, he sailed over the cooler - and the startled heads of the crouching Burke and Murray, and somersaulted through the air, to land feet first on the rough dirt, smashing both the wheels of his rollerblades and the little rocket thrusters.

No longer propelled by anything except his own momentum, Chance promptly fell to his knees and skidded along - kneepads preventing any injuries - before coming to something resembling a gentle stop banging against the closed passenger door of Burke and Murray's dump truck.

"Ow..." he moaned weakly.

Burke and Murray got to their feet, mouths agape.

Jake skated up and stopped beside them. "Chance!"

He skated over to his buddy as Chance slowly leaned over backward to lie on his back, knees bent, legs folded under him. Murray snickered as a wincing Burke, shaking his head, finally popped the cap on the soda bottle, and got blasted in the face by the shaken up carbonated beverage. Murray laughed at him, so Burke turned the deluge towards his shorter sibling, drenching him. Murray coughed and spluttered.

Ignoring them, Jake tends to Chance. "Chance, are you-"

He was cut off as suddenly Chance was up on his feet, the friction having completely annihilated the rollerblades - and his socks! - leaving him barefoot. And his soles were blazing red and smoking. "Yeeeooooooooowwwww!"

Hopping up and down like a man walking on hot coals, he struggled with the ruined remains of the rollerblades and finally got them off, then ran over towards the station wagon, each step an agony.

Burke turned and aimed the last of the spritzing, fizzy cold drink at Chance's feet, but it quickly ran out, so Chance clambered onto the station wagon's hood and dunked both feet into the cooler - to much consternation from its owners. Ignoring Burke and Murray yelling at him, his eyes rolled back into his head in pure ecstasy and relief as smoke and steam rises up from inside the cooler.

"Aaaahhhhhhhhhhhhh..."

"Hey, that's ours!" complained Murray.

"Pipe down, I'll get you guys some more soda," Jake the great mediator placated him.

Grumbling and dripping in soda, the Schleppers turn and plodded off. They discussed the race. They seemed especially delighted at the way Chance crashed at the end.

Jake was agitated. "No, you're not. You just took another unnecessary risk. As usual. I told you before we started this race that the turbo boosters hadn't been properly tested. You could've gotten yourself really hurt."

"Aw, jeez, you're just sore that I won!"

Jake fumed. "By cheating!"

"Says the guy who swore up and down he really did eat that last mongo pepper."

"Then let's do another race later on at the park," growled Jake.

"Great idea!"

"But this time we're not using the rocket function on the new Turbo Rollerblades," Jake said, lifting a finger. Before Chance could protest, he quickly added, "I'm not letting you ruin another experimental pair of my Turbo Rollerblades and make a fool of yourself in public? This time it's gonna be a real race, without either of us having an unfair advantage!"

Last edited by Kooshmeister on Wed Jul 18, 2018 7:03 pm, edited 3 times in total.

Murky daylight flooded through the filthy glass of the windows, weakly illuminating the laboratory interior. Flanked by his mushroom monster, Dr. Viper stood mixing up some ingredients in an enormous cauldron-like hollow stump whose contents were heated to a bubbling froth.

Street paced impatiently behind him. The four converted convicts stood off in a corner. They still resembled normal kats except for their eyes. The mushroom monster kept eying them suspicious, wriggling his tentacles in agitation; he didn't like them, or Street. Street, for his part, ignored the big mutant.

Viper whirled around. Both his and his mushroom monster's eyes glowed with mutual fury, yellow and red in the semi-darkness. "He knowsss the way-"

"And so will I once I bite someone who works there and gain their... 'cooperation,'" Street assured him.

Viper twisted his mouth into a scowl. He didn't like this rebelliousness from his "partner."

"Nor do I need him for protection. Or assistance." Street looked at Murdoch and the other converted prisoners from the night before. "I have all that I need right here."

"But..." Viper began, trying to argue.

Street held up a hand. "Relax, my dear Dr. Viper. My Ci-Kat-A brothers and I have everything under control. You'll soon have your precious katalyst. And soon I will have what I want as well."

He walked down the steps leading out of the lair interior.

"My brothers, to me!" he called.

The other four converted kats followed him. Once they were gone, Viper goes and opened the window. With the mushroom monster looming over his shoulder, Viper watched Street flying off over the desolate, swampy landscape of the Dead Forest. The four converted prisoners trudged through the water in the same direction.

He shut the window and he and the monster moved away, receding into the darkness of the lab interior.

~*~

An Enforcer chopper flew along high above Megakat City. Inside, Lieutenant Felina Feral was flying. Another Enforcer named King was sitting beside her in the co-pilot's seat. He'd been one of her uncle's top pilots for years, although this was the first time he and Felina had flown together. Riding in back was Gray Taylor, a fresh graduate from the Enforcer Academy. Young and eager, he was dressed in the uniform of an Enforcer commando, the helmet visor up, and could barely contain his excitement.

"Oh, boy, my first mission!"

"Calm down, rookie," said an amused Felina, keeping her attention on her flying, even though Gray's enthusiasm was infectious, making her feel like a rookie again herself, "nothing exciting happening yet.

"Sorry, ma'am, I mean, sir, I mean..." Gray trailed off uncertainly. "How do you address a female Enforcer officer?

"You say 'Lieutenant,'" King informed him from the co-pilot's seat.

Gray blushed. "Sorry, sir." Then to Felina, "Sorry, Lieutenant..."

Felina shook her head and exchanged smirks with her co-pilot.

"Not even a week out of the academy and he's already itchin' for action, huh, Lieutenant?" said King, already building an easy working relationship with Commander Feral's niece.

"Don't I know it," said Felina. Over her shoulder, she said, "Don't worry, Corporal Taylor."

The elevator doors dinged and slid open as Dr. Belljar stepped out. He was young and slim with short blonde hair. Carrying a notebook, he walked down the hall towards and enormous, steel-reinforced door marked "Top Secret - No Admittance." He sighed. Beyond that door was an old secret, mostly forgotten by all but a few Megakat City. He did not relish these weekly visits, or the progress reports he had to give Deputy Mayor Briggs and the Enforcers.

Posted out front was Steven. He was a big, burly kat wearing the uniform of a security guard. Gone was elderly, inattentive Emil. Megakat Biochemical Labs took its security very seriously these days. Steven rose and walked to the door, which had no visible handle. To one side behind the guard's desk was a big keypad. A little light above it was currently red.

"Come to see the freak show again, Doc?" asked Steven with a smirk.

"Just open the door," grumbled the scientist.

Shrugging, Steven entered a security code. There was a beep and the light turned green, the enormous armored door sliding open into the wall. The two went inside. This room amounted to little more than a long hallway. On either side were three huge holding cells. Like the entrance, they were only openable by a keypad each, but instead of a thick metal door, each cell had a sliding clear glass door allowing observers to see inside.

Inside five of the six cells were the surviving converted guards from the MASA incident. The sixth cell was empty. These five individuals were all that remained of the MASA personnel bitten and turned by the Ci-Kat-A queen and her drones... now progressed so far into their transformations they were essentially fully-fledged drones themselves, but unlike ordinary Ci-Kat-A, they were not purple, as they'd retained their original fur color, and their compound eyes were green instead of red. They had no clothing. One was distinct from the others; he had a bushy mustache from under which his insectoid mandibles poked. This, Belljar remembered, had been MASA's nuclear reactor guard and the first one turned after Dr. Street.

The five had been kept here since the incident, where Megakat Biochemical experimented on them endlessly in an effort to find a cure for the Ci-Kat-A bite, not just in the hopes of saving them, but also to develop a means of fighting the aliens if they should ever return.

Belljar turned and looked at the sixth, empty cell, wishing the missing Street occupied it. His whereabouts were unknown, and as long as he remained loose, the danger of a resurgent Ci-Kat-A "plague" was ever present... putting more pressure on Belljar and his colleagues to develop a cure.

Consulting his notes, Belljar walked down the line of cells on one side, examining the occupants to see what, if any, effect the latest experimental antidote they'd given them the previous evening had had. They stood motionlessly in the middle of their cells, and but for the twitching of their antenna, there was no sign that they're alive. The cells are soundproof, so we can't hear what, if any, noises the creatures are making.

As the scientist and the guard walked down the line of cells, the Ci-Kat-A's behavior changed. They rushed the glass doors and smacked into them, clawing uselessly at the clear barrier between them and their intended victims. Neither Belljar nor Steven flinched, used to these fruitless attacks.

"Ever wonder what goes through their heads?" asked Steven conversationally, pointing at the Ci-Kat-A.

"How much they'd like to get out of these cells and bite us," replied Belljar without looking up from his notebook. "So be vigilant."

"Yes sir."

With a sigh, Belljar made some notes. No improvements. He examined the two occupied cells on the other side of the room. Stopping at one, he activated an intercom, through which he and Steven could hear the occupant's ceaseless buzzing. Belljar turned the intercom off and then sighed again, making more notes.

"The latest treatments are still having no effect. Well, we'll just have to try something else. We can't give up on them."

"If you say so, Doc," replied Steven skeptically.

They left. Steven entered another code, shutting the door. Gradually, the agitated Ci-Kat-A stopped trying to break through the glass and resumed their original positions, standing motionlessly in the middle of their individual cells. They were as still as department store mannequins.

Belljar walked off down the hall toward the elevator. "I'm going back upstairs. Deputy Mayor Briggs ought to be arriving soon. I'll be back shortly."

"Sure thing, Doc."

Belljar got on the elevator and left.

Back in the restricted area, another change came over the five captured Ci-Kat-A. Their antennae twitched and they started becoming restless, even though no one was in the room, as though they sensed something.

Steven sighed tiredly, using one finger to spin his articulated desk lamp around in an effort to entertain himself, when suddenly the duct cover of an air vent flew off and lands on the floor. Suddenly very attentive, the guard gets up.

"Huh?"

The converted Murdoch slithered out of the air vent. He was still mostly kat-like except his compound eyes. The other three converted former convicts followed suit. As Steven went for his gun, the four hurriedly overwhelmed and subdued him. One covered his mouth. Another prevented him from drawing his laser pistol. Emerging from the vent last of all was Dr. Street. He glided down to the floor using his wings and landed in front of the group.

He studied the door, eying the keypad. Turning, he grabbed the front of Steven's uniform, jerking him out of the cons' grasp. Before the guard could yell for help, Street's mandibles sank into his throat. Releasing Steven, he steps back as the guard collapses, writhing. The Ci-Kat-A hive mind began to worm its way into his brain. After a moment, he stopped, rose, eyes green and insectoid. He walked to the keypad, where he entered his security code. The light turned green and the door opened. The converted prisoners entered one by one, Steven following.

Murdoch lingered with Street. "What about Super-Katalyst-"

"What that small-minded fool Viper wants can wait," Street cut him off angrily. "This is more important. Come."

Murdoch didn't the press the issue any further and the two went inside.

Callie Briggs' dark green sedan pulled into the parking lot of Megakat Biochemical and parked. Opening the gull wing door, the Deputy Mayor got out. She was dressed in her usual attire, but had her jacket off, slung over her shoulder, tie slightly loosened, the top button of her dress shirt undone; concessions to the heat. She was here for her weekly visit to check up on the captured Ci-Kat-A, to see if Dr. Belljar had made any progress. She saw him through a window and waved, then went inside.

A stone-faced security guard was at the front desk in the lobby. A little desk fan blew over him nonstop. He glances over disinterestedly as Callie came in. Dr. Belljar got off the elevator to greet her.

"Ms. Briggs, thank you so much for coming."

They shook hands. Although she put her blazer back on, Callie had elected not to button it, or her shirt, and left her tie loosened.

She fanned herself. "It sure is a scorcher out there today, isn't it, Dr. Belljar?"

"Yes it is, isn't it? Thank goodness for the miracle of air conditioning!"

They turn and headed towards the elevators.

"The AC in my car is busted. It was like riding in an oven all the way over here. I don't supposed you can make this presentation a long one, can you, Doctor?" she asked half-jokingly.

The two got on the elevator. "I'll do my best to ensure you remain to enjoy our facility's air conditioning for as long as you require, Deputy Mayor."

The doors shut. A few minutes later, the two were in the main lab of the building while Dr. Belljar retrieved the necessary files. Big windows from floor to ceiling let bright sunshine in. There were rows and rows of shelves containing neatly arranged and carefully labelled bubbling flasks and canisters of orange-colored katalysts and gently humming electronic machinery, computers and the like. There are a few workstations and desks. On one, there was a ten gallon tank containing a large black desert scorpion. After a moment, Dr. Belljar approached holding a manila file folder containing the data on Megakat Biochemical's efforts to cure the afflicted guards.

"I hope you have some progress to show me," Callie said. "There's five anxious families awaiting answers. They're calling my office night and day. I need to give them something, Doctor."

The scientist squirmed uncomfortably. "I just got done checking the latest results and they aren't encouraging..." He trailed off.

Callie sternly adjusted her purse's shoulder strap. "I want to have a look for myself anyway."

"Sam Konway down at Enforcer Headquarters has a few interesting ideas. He's a little more openminded than I am, which is probably why Feral headhunted him to head their biotech division. I can show you what I've managed to get done so far, and then what Konway has in-"

He stopped short as they 'rounded the corner. They saw the ventilation grate on the floor - and the top secret room's door wide open, various figures filling the doorframe.

"What in the world?"

They walked closer, more cautiously, and ducked down behind Steven's desk, peering over the top into the room. Dr. Harley Street looked around angrily at the imprisoned Ci-Kat-A, spreading his arms like a preacher giving a sermon.

"My brothers! In a moment you shall be free! And together we shall have our new queen and conquer not only Megakat City, but the world!"

The five converted MASA guards in their glass-encased cells were jumping up and down excitedly. The bug-eyed Steven went to each one in turn and entered the security code to open it. The glass doors slid open, and the former MASA personnel stepped free to mingle with their new "brothers," making particularly grateful buzzing noises to Dr. Street, who offered soothing pets and strokes.

Callie and Belljar continue peering over the desk. "This is bad!" whispered Belljar.

More excited buzzing from the assembled converted kats. Murdoch glanced towards the open door. The two ducked down behind Steven's desk. But it seemed Murdoch had seen them. Or at least he thought she saw something. Enough to go and investigate. Two of the converted convicts accompanied him.

"We'd better alert someone...!" Dr. Belljar was whispering fearfully.

"A good idea!" Callie agreed, slipping her hand into her purse, trying to locate the communicator. Suddenly-

"Aha!"

Gasping, they turned. Murdoch was standing on the desk, pointing at them as though in accusation. He was flanked on either side by the other two converted prisoners who'd accompanied him. Behind them, through the open door, Street and the others stopped what they were doing and turned, antennae twitching in agitation.

"Spies!" cried Murdoch.

He hopped down from the desk and ran towards them, salivating, arms outstretched like a zombie. Callie swung her purse to hit him, knocking him slightly off balance. A second convict rushed forwards. Having seen Callie in action, he grabbed her purse and ripped it from her grasp, throwing it aside. It smacked into the wall, spilling out its contents, including the communicator.

Jumping up, Callie resorted to fisticuffs, punching the converted prisoner in the face, sending him staggering backward. He fell onto his back and lay spread-eagle on the carpet. She then kicked Murdoch in the diaphragm with the tip of her high-heeled shoe, making him double over in agony, ripping her skirt all the way up past her mid-thigh in the process.

As Murdoch collapsed and the third convict advanced, Callie grabbed a potted plant and threw it at him. It smashed across his face, and he fell to his knees, clutching his head.

Dr. Street emerged from the top secret lab, growling, and with one great sweep of his arm, knocked everything off of Steven's desk, and then, with superhuman strength, he grabbed the desk and lifted the entire thing over his head.

"All those who oppose the rule of the Ci-Kat-A... MUST DIE!"

With a grunt, he hurled the desk towards Callie and Dr. Belljar.

"Duck!" cried Callie.

The two hit the floor and the desk smashed into the wall, splintering into pieces!

At their leader's command, the combined might of the Ci-Kat-A came pouring out of the lab door behind Dr. Street as he stood motionless, seemingly impassive, the converted kats buzzing past him. Murdoch and the other two convicts got up and joined them in advancing on their two intended victims. It was a gruesome and terrifying sight. Callie couldn't believe this. Harley Street alive! And now more Ci-Kat-A!

If they got out of the building, there was no telling what harm they could loose upon Megakat City. But maybe it was already too late. After all, Street hadn't come alone. Who knew how many other kats he'd bitten before coming here? Megakat City could already be doomed. But Callie would worry about that later. Right now, she needed to get herself and Dr. Belljar to safety. She wasn't going to do any good if she got bitten and became a Ci-Kat-A herself.

Dr. Belljar raced off down the hallway. Callie started to follow before noticing her communicator lying over by the other items that spilled out of her purse. She hesitated. She needed to call the SWAT Kats. She lunged for it. Halfway down the hall, Belljar turned and saw her. He ran back and grabbed her arm, misunderstanding. Of course, he didn't know about the communicator.

"Are you nuts?" he cried. "Come on!"

"But--!!!" Callie protested.

Ignoring her pleas, he dragged her along down the hall as the buzzing horde of kat-insects pursued them. Callie and Belljar made it to the elevator. She'd need to find some other means of contacting outside help. Belljar pressed the call button, Callie gasping as she watched the Ci-Kat-A horde coming towards them.

"Come on, come on...!" Belljar whimpered, desperate.

Ding! The doors opened. The two rushed in and waited for the doors to close. They were halfway shut when one of the convicts suddenly appeared and reached in. If the door shut on his arm, Callie realized, the safety feature would cause it to automatically open again. And it seemed he knew it, grinning evilly. Pressing herself flat against the rear wall of the elevator car, Callie took off one of her high heels and threw it at his face. He yelped and staggered back as it bounced off his forehead and back into the elevator. The doors shut. Callie sighed in relief.

She and Dr. Belljar heard frenzied banging, then clawed fingertips appeared through the crack, beginning to force the fiercely-resisting doors open.

"They're gonna get in!" Callie cried. She looked up and saw the emergency hatch. She kicked off her other shoe. "Give me a boost! Hurry!"

Belljar jumped up and grabbed her hand and climbed up just as the Ci-Kat-A wrenched the doors open and came rushing in, the mustached former MASA guard in the lead. Belljar kicked the hatch cover closed. Suddenly it opened again, and the mustached Ci-Kat-A appeared, mandibles snapping. He bit Belljar's heel. The scientist screamed. Using her bare foot, Callie kicked the Ci-Kat-A in the face, but he refused to relinquish his hold, attempting to drag the flailing Dr. Belljar back down into the elevator with him. Callie kicked the hatch cover closed on the former MASA guard's head. Bang! With her heel, she grunted and kicked down on the cover's top, banging him on the head a second time. Finally, the kat-insect released his grip and fell back down into the elevator interior, leaving Callie and Belljar lying there panting and sweaty.

After a moment, a panicky Dr. Belljar took off his shoe and inspected his foot. Nothing. No bite. His sock isn't even torn. He sighed in relief. The mandibles had only penetrated the thick rubber of the shoe's heel. Callie looked up at the elevator cables. She remembered how she and Razor had ascended the central air shaft of the Megakat Tower with her piggybacking on him. Vines, elevator cables...

She turned to Belljar. "Can you climb?"

"I, uh, I think so..."

"Then take off your other shoe and follow me!" She began to climb, using her splaying toes to grip the cables. "Grip the cable with your toes!"

Confused, but getting the idea, Belljar took off his other shoe and both socks and went up after her. "Where'd you learn to do this?" he asked.

Callie smirked. "You mean besides hitting the gym and climbing the ropes twice a week to stay in shape because I'm constantly being targeted by every criminal with a pulse? And some without?"

"I meant the gripping the cable with your toes thing."

"Oh," said Callie, smiling gently. "A friend taught me."

~*~

In the elevator, the Ci-Kat-A with the mustache was furious, clenching his fist and rubbing where Callie kicked him. "Capture...!" he managed to snarl. His voice was heavily distorted but intelligible. Unlike Street, the further a converted kat transformed, the more difficult speaking became for them, and they were really only capable of uttering a few monosyllabic grunts.

Street approached. "Forget them."

The mustached Ci-Kat-A was irritated. "They'll tell..." he hissed.

"It won't matter," Street said, dismissive. "By the time help comes, our business here will be finished. He turned to Steven. "Which way to the main lab?"

Steven pointed and walked towards the stairs, the other Ci-Kat-A following.

~*~

On the next floor, Callie managed to get the elevator doors open and climbed through. She waited for Dr. Belljar. He climbed into view and she grabbed his hand and helped him get up the rest of the way.

Meanwhile, Felina Feral's chopper zoomed between the buildings on patrol. Suddenly a voice buzzed through the radio. A priority message from dispatch.

"Attention all units in the vicinity of Megakat Biochemical Labs! Respond to a possible break-in!"

That place, thought Felina with a sigh. She grabbed radio. "This is Chopper 4, responding on the double!"

In back, Gray Taylor could barely contain himself. What a time to have a rookie along, Felina thought.

"This is getting better and better!" Gray said.

"I told you this place was rarely quiet for long! Hang on!"

She pushed the throttle forward. The chopper flew towards Megakat Biochemical in the distance.

~*~

At the salvage yard, everything had been loaded up for the park trip. Chance and Jake had put their shirts on and were getting into the tow truck. Outside, Burke honked the dump truck's horn impatiently as Murray poked out of the passenger window.

He and Chance shut the doors. Chance turned the truck on and messed with the radio, flipping past some music, trying to find a good song to help him take his mind off of what a day at the park with Burke and Murray Schlepper was going to be like. Suddenly, an Enforcer dispatcher's voice filtered in weakly. As with all their radio equipment, he and Jake had modified the tow truck's radio to be able to tune in to the Enforcer channel in case of emergencies.

"-akat Biochemical L-" the voice was saying. Chance could only pick out "biochemical" and he already didn't like the way the afternoon was shaping up.

"Hold it, Chance! Go back!" Jake cried.

Ignoring more honking from Burke, Chance turned it back to the Enforcer band. "I repeat," said the dispatcher, "we have a possible break-in at Megakat Biochemical Labs! One unit is already en route, but be advised, all available units in the area join in investigation! This is a Priority 1 site!"

"Boy, he can say that again!" grumbled Jake. Sometimes it was a toss-up whether Megakat Biochemical Labs or Puma-Dyne was a more popular target for the city's criminal element.

Chance turned off the radio. "And he will. That's what dispatchers do. That's probably the tenth time he's said it. Let the Enforcers handle it."

"Nnng, fine!" He shut off the engine. It beat going to the park with Burke and Murray anyway.

He and Jake got out and walk to the idling dump truck. Murray looked down at them, growling, Burke visible over his shoulder at the wheel.

"You guys go on ahead," said Jake. "We, uh, forgot some stuff." If anybody would buy such a lame excuse, it'd be the Schleppers.

"Fine with me!" said Murray, then nudged his brother. "C'mon!"

The truck turned and lurched out of the salvage yard. Waiting until they were sure it was gone, Chance and Jake turned and rushed with all speed towards the garage - and the hangar.

~*~

Felina's chopper continued towards Megakat Biochemical. Its path took it towards the Kat's Eye News chopper, flying at a slightly higher altitude. Ann Gora was in the front passenger seat. Jonny K. sat in back filming out the open side door.

Ann was speaking into her microphone, finishing a wather report. "And so it's a perfect afternoon for a day at the beach. This is Ann Gora, Kat's Eye News, wishing everyone in Megakat City a fun and sunny Thursday!"

She yawned and stretched.

"And I've got a date with my deck chair back home. Oof. Take us back, Al."

"Hey, look!" Jonny said, pointing.

The Enforcer chopper zoomed by underneath them, the rotor blades whizzing past close enough to touch.

"Now where are they going in such a hurry?" Ann wondered.

She squinted in the bright afternoon sunshine, seeing that the Enforcers' path would take them to Megakat Biochemical Labs. Jonny did too.

"Looks like Megakat Biochemical Labs!" he said.

Suddenly all fired up, Ann said, "Al, go after them!"

Sighing, the news chopper pilot whipped the helicopter around and flew off after the Enforcer one.

~*~

Felina's chopper approached Megakat Biochemical Labs and hovered a safe distance down the street. Felina's co-pilot King looked through some binoculars as Gray Taylor fidgets in the back.

"Let's see what we can see..." King muttered.

Gray was impatient. "Come on, what are we waiting for...?"

"Pope down kid," said the veteran Enforcer. "We gotta get the lay of the land."

Gray frowned.

"No use rushing i-" King continued but stopped short.

Through the binoculars, he saw through the front windows looking into the main lab. Although the huge panes of glass primarily showed reflections of the surrounding buildings, the King could see the Ci-Kat-A ransacking the room. He froze and went cold. He remembered those things. And what they'd done to three good Enforcer pilots he'd known personally from the academy.

"What is it?" asked Felina, sensing something was wrong with her co-pilot.

"Ci-Kat-A!" King said, gritting his teeth in fury. "They tried to take over Megakat City once! They got a lot of good Enforcers killed that day!"

His grip tightened on the control yoke on his side of the chopper, finger twitching at the trigger. Felina placed a calming hand on his wrist and his grip relaxed. She hadn't directly experienced the Ci-Kat-A incident. It'd been before her time. But shared his anger at the Enforcer lives lost. Nevertheless, she prided herself on remaining cool and professional, and she needed her companions to keep their heads.

"Easy, Private," she said. "I know I wasn't there when this all went down but I can understand your anger. Nevertheless, we've got the element of surprise, so let's not spoil it.

"Roger, Lieutenant," King said, a little reluctantly.

The chopper climbed higher and flew around to flank the building, coming in from above and behind to land on the rooftop helipad undetected. As the rotor blades wound down, the side door whooshed open and Felina and King out, checking their laser pistols.

Gray squatted in the open door. "What about me?"

Felina didn't want the rookie near anything dangerous on his first mission. "You stay here!" he commanded sternly. "Radio for backup!"

She turned to King.

"Come on!"

They rushed towards the rooftop door. Looking angry and dejected, Gray went and slumped into the pilot's seat, arms crossed indignantly. He flicked on the radio to report in to Headquarters.

"So much for my big first mission," he grumbled to himself. Into the radio, he said, "Attention, dispatch! This is Corporal Gray Taylor! We've got a break-in at Megakat Biochemical Labs by some creatures called Ci-Kat-A! Over!"

~*~

The Turbokat roared out of the salvage yard tunnel and took to the skies. Chance and Jake were now masked as T-Bone and Razor and were tuned to the Enforcer radio broadcast in the jet.

"I repeat! Megakat Biochemical has been infiltrated by creatures known as Ci-Kat-A!" the Enforcer who'd identified himself as Corporal Taylor continued.

A shudder went through T-Bone and he made a face. "Eeew, not those guys again. I thought we'd eliminated that bug problem!"

Razor thought for a moment, trying to remember every individual Ci-Kat-A they'd taken out. "I'm pretty sure we killed the Enforcers who got bitten, and all the drones."

"And the queen," T-Bone interjected, remembering how the penthouse of Megakat Tower had landed on her and flattened her, smirking a little at the memory. He'd loved seeing that big bug go splat. It'd been especially funny when her guts drenched Mayor Manx's limo.

"Right." They were flying over the city now. "That leaves only a few unaccounted for. Like Dr. Bug-Eyes himself." It occurred to Razor that they never had found out what had happened to MASA's Dr. Harley Street, last seen taking an Octopus Missile to the face and falling three-hundred stories out the Megakat Tower penthouse window. Not to mention-

"And..." said T-Bone, realizing, "the guards from the Space Center! Nobody ever did tell us what happened to those guys!"

"Took the words right outta my mouth!"

T-Bone thought. "Three-No four! So five left?"

He glanced back at Razor, who was rubbing his chin, eyes narrowed in concentration. Wracking his brain. That was all the Ci-Kat-A. Wasn't it? "I can't help but feel there's one we're forgetting..."

"Who cares?" said T-Bone, turning around and focusing on his flying, smirking smugly. "At least without the queen it's not a full-scale invasion this time. Just the leftovers from last time to mop up."

"Yeah, except they can make more by biting people!" Razor reminded him.

T-Bone's smirk vanished.

"Even without the queen, it could be a huge epidemic!"

"Take it easy, buddy!" T-Bone said, trying to reassure his partner - and himself. "We'll find out how many there are when we get to Megakat Labs! And then we'll squish 'em!" he added with grim determination.

Razor was a little uncomfortable with T-Bone's cavalier attitude towards killing the converted kats. The three Enforcers whose choppers they'd shot down had been last resorts to save the life of Commander Feral. Nevertheless, he said nothing else as the Turbokat continued on towards Megakat Biochemical Labs.

~*~

Steven and three of the four converted prisoners watched impassively as the more "evolved" Ci-Kat-A randomly trashed the lab, hurling empty beakers and overturning tables. Street stood apart from his brothers, idly watching the scorpion crawling around in its tank. The little arachnid crawls around, snapping its pinchers up at Street. He then walked over to the window. Were those rotor blades he heard? He didn't see anything.

His face with his mandibles and huge green compound eyes was almost blank and impossible, but his antennae betrayed his inner emotions. He was angry at being reduced to being Dr. Viper's gofer, and didn't like the idea of continuing to work for that slimy swamp-dweller, even if Viper had saved his life.

Off in the distance, he could see the cooling towers of the Megakat Nuclear Plant. His antennae twitch more excitedly now, in deep thought.

Nearby, Murdoch walked walked along the rows of shelved katalysts. They were almost all a sickly orange colored, each in a neatly-labeled, stopperared Erlenmeyer flask. Murdoch moved his finger along the rows until he stopped at the one labeled "Super-Katalyst 566." He grabbed it, turning to Street over by the window.

"Street!"

As though snapping back from a daydream, Street jerked and turned to look as Murdoch walked over with the flask.

"Super-Katalyst 566! Success!" Murdoch proclaimed, grinning broadly.

"Good work, but there's been a change of plans," Street said. "I've decided that what we want and what Viper wants are no longer compatible."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean we aren't going to give him Super-Katalyst 566," Street said, walking past Murdoch to investivate the shelves himself, head jerking rapidly this way and that in a very insectlike manner as befitting his nature. "He's going to think we are however..."

Murdoch's mouth twisted into a grimace of curiosity and confusion. He didn't like being Viper's flunkey either and would do whatever Street commanded, yet he was nevertheless thrown by this sudden change in what had been a very carefully laid plan. He still possessed some autonomy because his transformation hadn't progressed as far as the five drones they'd freed from captivity.

Street's gaze lighted on something. Realizing he found what he was looking for, he snatched another flask frm the shelf, antennae going wild, suggesting great excitement. It was another super-katalyst, but of a higher number, but Viper wouldn't know the difference until it was too late. All he had to do was switch the labels.

Murdoch walked over.

"I know enough of biochemistry to know that this chemical will serve our purpose better," Street said, pointing to the flask he just grabbed. "But I still need that swamp-dwelling maniac to mix the brew for us."

Felina and King took up positions on either side of the double doors leading to the lab, guns up. The doors were slightly open, allowing the two a good view of the lab interior. They could see the Ci-Kat-A but the Ci-Kat-A couldn't see them.

King was sweating a little. "Don't let them bite you," he said in a husky, terrified whisper.

"Huh?" Felina whispered back.

"The ones with mandibles," King clarified hoarsely. "Don't let them bite you... If you do, it's all over."

Grimacing, Felina looked in, watching the fully transformed former kats crawling over the walls like roaches, while the recently-converted kats stood in a line like stoic soldiers awaiting orders.

"You become like... them..." King continued.

"I read the reports," Felina snapped. She really needed King to keep his cool. Reassuringly, she said, "It'll be okay, all right?"

He nodded. Good. A combination of harshness and kindness never failed.

"Now, on my signal..." She waited a moment, inhaling deeply. "Go!"

Street was still holding the flask of the second super-katalyst, while Murdoch still has Super-Katalyst 566. "Now to switch the labels," Street said.

Bam! The doors flew inward. The two Enforcers leaped in, guns aimed at the eleven Ci-Kat-A. The five fully-transformed drones jumped back, making irritated, angry shrieking sounds, while Steven and the converted prisoners merely turned their heads as one, their formerly expressionless faces twisting into hateful grimaces at the intrusion.

"Freeze!" Felina ordered.

"The Enforcers!" cried Murdoch.

The converted kats found themselves staring down the barrels of two laser pistols and were unsure how to act. Felina and King had them dead to rights. They entered the room fully, the Ci-Kat-A backing up warily. Meanwhile, two of the "old" Ci-Kat-A - including the mustacheed guard - were carefully and stealthily approaching on the ceiling.

Sensing movement, however, Felina whipped her gun up and fires. The laser blast hit between the duo, blowing a huge hole in the ceiling. Amidst falling debris, the two drones fell down and landed flailing on their backs, stunned. Their brother Ci-Kat-A tensed as if to attack, but Felina quickly brought her gun back down to point directly into the midst of them.

"Nice try. Now, surrender or we'll splatter your guts all over this lab!"

She and King approached cautiously, the Ci-Kat-A backing up further. A completely unfazed Street made a point of handing the flask he was holding to Murdoch so that the converted con was holding both it and Super-Katalyst 566 and he had his hands free. His wings buzzed in irritation. Turning, he eyed a flask labeled "Katalyst 96" on a shelf nearby, then looked over at the tank with the scorpion in it.

Felina and King whirled, startled and angry to find Taylor standing in the doorway behind them.

An opening.

Street issued forth a piercing shriek. "Attack!"

The Ci-Kat-A rushed towards the distracted Enforcers. A free-for-all erupted. The Ci-Kat-A rushed forward and quickly tried to overwhelm the three Enforcers. The second convict and a Ci-Kat-A drone leaped onto Felina and King, but she and her pilot managed to shake them off, flipping themselves over backwards, sending the two Ci-Kat-A flying through the air. They slammed against the wall on either side of the double doors and fell to the floor, buzzing in disorientation and confusion.

Callie Briggs and Dr. Belljar, still barefoot, cautiously crawled over on their hands and knees and peered in. Gray Taylor, terrified, fired his blaster this way and that, but the winged Ci-Kat-A all dodged his fire.

In the lab, Felina karate-chopped the first Co-Kat-A, while King pistol-whipped the second converted convict as laser fire flew over their heads, the third Ci-Kat-A drone dodging them easily in midair, Gray's laser beams putting holes in the ceiling.

"Corporal, control your fire!" Felina yelled. Like Dr. Belljar, she was concerned that a wayward blast might blow them all to kingdom come. She remembered that in past incidents, Megakat Labs had a tendency to blow up. "Everything in here is extremely explosive!"

Gray stopped firing. "Look out!" he cried.

Felina turned. Steven, the converted kat in the security guard's uniform, came running at her. His laser pistol was still holstered. Apparently he hadn't had the presence of mind to draw his weapon. Yet. Felina wanted to ensure he didn't. She kicked him in the midsection and he went flying back, crashing into a big lab experiment table. He went sliding along it, knocking flasks, beakers and other delicate-looking laboratory glassware to shatter all over the floor before falling off the other end himself.

Felina winced. This was a bad place for a fight, with so many combustible things around them.

Suddenly, she was recovered from behind by the recovered second Ci-Kat-A, who hooked his spindly arms under her armpits, restraining her. He was about to bite her when Gray Taylor hit him on the head with the butt of his gun. This stunned him enough to allow Felina to wriggle free, and, turning, enraged, the drone backhanded the Enforcer rookie, sending Gray staggering away to collapse between the mustached Ci-Kat-A and his fellow Ci-Kat-A, the first one, who'd fallen from the ceiling earlier.

Recovering, the duo rolled over and grabbed Gray, holding him down. He struggled, but to no avail. "Help!" he cried.

Felina and King turned to come to his aid, Felina cursing ever bringing a rookie along in the first place, when Street grabbed the flask of Katalyst 96 he'd been eyeing earlier, pushing off the floor and taking to the air. He buzzed over the two Enforcers' heads, grabbing their sidearms away with his grasping, talon-like feet. He tossed them away, then grabbed a tall metal shelf with his free hand, shoving it over. It fell down and landed on Felina and King, pinning them, scattering cardboard boxes and spare computer parts everywhere. Satisfied, Street buzzed down and landed over by the tank containing the desert scorpion specimen.

Over by the door, the second convict recovered and walked over, assisting dragging a squirming, terrified-looking Gray to his feet. Callie watched helplessly, unsure of what to do.

"You'll be joining us, Enforcer," Street said to Gray.

"No!" cried Felina, struggling. The heavy metal shelf kept her and King pinned by good.

He uncorked the flask of Katalyst 96 and poured it into the tank, splashing it onto the scorpion. The arachnid twitched and began to turn in circles in increasing agitation, becoming visibly larger with each circle it completed.

"Viper isn't the only one who can create monsters..." Street said, throwing the empty flask aside to shatter against the wall.

Viper? That would explain their interest in the katalysts. Felina now correctly guessed that there'd been a secret facility within Megakat Biochemical where the surviving converted MASA guards from the last time these alien bugs had tried to take over Megakat City had been imprisoned for study. She'd figured that'd been why Street had broken in; to free his Ci-Kat-A "brothers." But his interest in the katalysts had puzzled her until now. Were Street and his cronies working with - or for? - Dr. Viper to steal chemicals?

She had to get free so she could warn everyone that there was danger besides the resurgent Ci-Kat-A plague. That was bad enough. Potentially apocalyptic, even, given everything she'd read and what King had told her. But if Dr. Viper was involved, it was worse than anyone could possibly imagine. She twisted and strained. Beside her, King did the same. But it was no use. The heavy duty metal utility shelf refused to budge.

Street pushed the table with the scorpion on it over onto the floor in front of the two pinned Enforcers, smashing the glass tank. The steadily growing scorpion began crawling towards Felina and King. They renewed their struggles, useless though they were.

That accomplished, Street grabbed and prepared to bite Gray Taylor. "Soon, your fear will be replaced by the rapturous delight of serving a higher purpose," he reassured the terrified rookie, "then--"

Suddenly the sound of helicopter rotors caught his attention. He released Gray back into the arms of the other Ci-Kat-A. More Enforcers? No. He turned. It was the Kat's Eye News chopper, hovering outside the huge windows of the lab. Jonny leaned out, filming, but Street only had compound eyes for Ann Gora, who was reporting from the front seat beside the pilot. Street was so focused on her that he barely registered the appearance of an all too familiar black jet swooping past the news chopper.

The other Ci-Kat-A were perplexed to say the least. "Dr. Street, we have what he came for," Murdoch said. "We must go."

Street ignored him as something triggered a memory...

~*~

Dr. Harley Street, wearing a full-body hazmat suit except for the helmet, which was tucked under one arm, stood beside his MASA car in the desert, offering Kat's Eye News reporter Ann Gora a friendly little grin as the retrieval truck lifted Kat Sat 1 up with its crane behind her.

"Why don't you stop by the Space Center tomorrow?" he asked the beautiful reporter flirtatiously.

"Kat's eye news will be there, Dr. Street," Ann said with a smile.

~*~

Street was snapped back to the present by the telltale sonic boom heralding the Turbokat's arrival. Nevertheless, Street remained fixated on Ann.

"Dr. Street!" Murdoch said, buzzing and twitching irritably.

"Switch the labels!" Street told him without taking his eyes off of Ann. "Hurry! The SWAT Kats are here!"

Murdoch nodded. Street continued towards the window, continuing to hear the last thing Ann Gora said to him before he'd been bitten by the queen back the Space Center. "Kat's Eye News will be there, Dr. Street."

"A sign..." he murmured to himself. Yes. A sign. The answer to the Ci-Kat-A's problems was sitting in the hovering helicopter right outside, he realized.

Suddenly, the barefoot Callie ran in, grabbing a microscope and clobbering the mustached Ci-Kat-A over the head with it. He gave a pitiful little buzz and collapsed. She punched the second con and sent him crashing into Murdoch, who fell to the floor. He held onto the one flask, but the let go of the one containing Super-Katalyst 566, which rolled away. This left only one Ci-Kat-A holding Gray Taylor.

"I got this guy!" Gray said. "Go help Lieutenant Feral!"

Nodding, Callie ran over, stopping short at the sight of the scorpion, now the size of a table, crawling over. Shaking away her terror, she started struggling to pull the shelf off of the trapped Enforcers as the scorpion came nearer and nearer.

"Deputy Mayor, what are you doing here?" cried Felina.

"Believe it or not, I came to check on the progress of those guys!" she explained, straining, looking over at the Ci-Kat-A drones.

"And where are your shoes...?"

"Nevermind!" Callie said.

The scorpion hissed at her, grabbing the shelf in one serrated claw, and she shrieked, kicking it in his ugly face with her bare foot, barely avoiding its mandibles. It growled and released the shelf and backed up, shielding its face with its claws, raising the rear portion of its abdomen, tail uncurling slightly.

Outside, the Turbokat swooped around and landed in front of the building, unable to land on the rooftop helipad due to the Enforcer chopper. Noticing from the news chopper above, Al turned and tapped Jonny on the shoulder. Jonny turned and started filming out the window on the opposite side of the chopper as the SWAT Kats emerged from the jet, flexing their fingers in their Glovatrixes.

"C'mon," said T-Bone, "let's get this over with before I get the heebie-jeebies again!"

"Aw, and here I thought you said you'd gotten over your little bug phobia," Razor teased.

"Yeah," said T-Bone. "The LITTLE bug phobia. The BIG bug phobia... not so much!" He shuddered.

They rushed inside. The guard at the desk, having stood up as the Turbokat landed outside, looked confused. He was completely unaware of what was going on several floors above him because no alarms had gone off. He reflexively put his hand on his holstered sidearm, but didn't draw it.

"Hey, have you seen a giant Ci-Kat-A...?" asked T-Bone.

"Huh?" asked the confused guard, wondering if there'd been some breach of security and whether these vigilantes knew about Dr. Belljar's efforts to study and cure the converted kats upstairs. He considered calling the Enforcers.

"Nevermind," said T-Bone.

"What do you SWAT Kats want?" asked the guard.

"We're just here to bust some big bugs," replied Razor.

He and Razor went into the stairwell. The guard scratched his head under his hat. That was it. He was calling the Enforcers. He grabbed the telephone.

~*~

In the hovering news chopper, Ann Gora seemed mesmerized as Dr. Street approached her from inside the lab and stood motionless, only the window glass separating them. Behind him, Callie was still struggling with the heavy utility shelf pinning Felina, while Gray Taylor was fighting the first Ci-Kat-A, and seemed to be losing. Ann, staring into Street's eyes, was a little unsure of what to say or do, as Jonny turned and filmed over her shoulder.

Finally, she found her voice and spoke into her microphone. "This is Ann Gora, Kat's Eye News, coming to you live from Megakat Biochemical Labs where it seems we are experiencing a resurgence of the giant alien Ci-Kat-A creatures who terrorized the MASA Space Center and endangered the city last year!"

Street lifted one clawed, three-fingered hand and laid it against the glass separating him from Ann, feeling a desperate longing welling up within him, completely ignoring everything going on around him.

The first Ci-Kat-A had an overpowered Gray Taylor pinned to the wall and started sinking his salivating mandibles into the Enforcer rookie's throat. The SWAT Kats rushed in. The drone stopped mid-bite and turned towards them, having only partially pierced Gray's furred skin, but kept the Enforcer pinned against the wall.

"Yikes!" cried Razor. "That's a lot of Ci-Kat-A!"

T-Bone pointed at the scorpion. "And that!" he said, disgusted.

The Ci-Kat-A holding Gray opened his mouth. A deluge of vomitous, yellowish green gunk came rocketing out, and the two vigilantes dodged deftly, shoulder rolling to either side of the door they entered through. It sailed past them, out into the hallway, splattering onto the wall.

Lying on his side, he spun, sweeping the first Ci-Kat-A's feet out from under him. Releasing Gray, he fell onto his back and began flailing like an overturned turtled, spindly legs kicking. Gray, clutching his neck, slid down the wall. Rising, Razor helped him stand.

"You okay, pal?" he asked, concerned for the Enforcer.

Gray seemed groggy. "I, uh, I think so..." he said.

Razor turned and looked at T-Bone as the mustached Ci-Kat-A got up and charged him, snarling. He was about to shout a warning, but T-Bone, getting up, was already aware of the approaching enemy. He aimed his Glovatrix, intending to give at least one of these glop-spewing bugs a taste of his own medicine.

Globs of blackish sludge shot out and hit the Ci-Kat-A in the face, sending him flying backwards. He hit the floor, elbow hitting the flask of Super-Katalyst 566 just as a recovering Murdoch was reaching for it. It went spinning away. Murdoch and the second con watched in suspense as the whirling container threatened to hit the edge of a shelf and smash. They winced, then sighed when it didn't, slowly spinning to a stop.

Murdoch shoved his fellow converted prisoner off of himself. "Get them!" he ordered. "I'll get the katalyst!"

The second con nodded and, along with the third and fourth Ci-Kat-A, rushed over to try and prevent Callie from assisting Felina and her fellow Enforcer, intent that the mutated scorpion should have its helpless victims.

T-Bone nodded. "You and Taylor keep the rest of the bugs busy while I go help Callie and the Lieutenant and that other guy!"

"Roger!" said Razor, turning as the converted guard, Steven, and two more converted cons, including the one with the scar, and the remaining "old" Ci-Kat-A came rushing at him. "No problem," he assured himself confidently. He could take these four.

He knelt down and fired a big net, which scooped up the scarred con, pinning him against the wall. He shrieked in distress, a sound no normal kat could ever make, causing the fourth Ci-Kat-A drone to break off and go to help him. Meanwhile, the second con and third Ci-Kat-A descended upon Callie to prevent her from helping the Enforcers. They didn't get there in time. With a final grunt, Callie lifted the heavy shelf off of Felina and King, allowing them to wiggle free just as the scorpion's tail darted forward, the stinger puncturing the floor where they'd just been.

The third Ci-Kat-A grabbed Callie's arm. As Felina and King got up to help her, they were suddenly both grabbed by the giant scorpion's claws and lifted into the air. The claws squeezed them, forcing the air out of their lungs. Their mouths opened and closed in silent agony as the segmented tail uncurled, preparing to sting. As the Ci-Kat-A was about to bite Callie, T-Bone leaped in and kicked him in the thorax, sending him stumbling backwards over to where Murdoch was crawling on his hands and knees to grab the crucial flask. The staggering drone's heel knocked it away, eliciting a growl of annoyance from Murdoch.

"Thanks T-Bone," said Callie, panting.

"No problem." T-Bone turned to the scorpion. "Hey, pinchy!"

The scorpion, its tail curling back up slightly, turned toward him, its victims in either claw.

"Suck smoke!"

He fired a gas grenade from his Glovatrix, which hit the creature in the face. Boom! A cloud of smoke filled the air, momentarily blinding the monstrous arachnid. As it coughed and wheezed, it lowered its arms a big, weakening its grip enough for Felina and her fellow Enforcer to wiggle free. They fell to the floor as the scorpion defensively backed away, disoriented by the smoke. They were helped to their feet by Callie and T-Bone, and rejoined the fight. Punching and kicking, Felina grabbed the third drone's spindly arm and swung him around, using him to hit the second con, knocking him flat on his back. She then released the former MASA guard and he went sailing away, where he became entangled in the tubing and wires which ran along the lab ceiling, struggling and hissing fiercely.

She then noticed Murdoch. "Whatever you do, don't let them get those flasks!" she told T-Bone. "They've got some kind of important katalysts Dr. Viper wants!"

"Roger that!" T-Bone said, started off, then paused. "Wait. Viper? What is this a miscreant convention?"

He ran over and did a slide across the floor like a baseball player heading for home, kicking the flask just out of Murdoch's reach.

"No!" cried Murdoch.

The flask went whirling away, then got sent flying in another direction, towards Razor, by the flailing mustached Ci-Kat-A, stilling to free his eyes from the tar. An enraged Murdoch set the other flask down out of the way and jumped onto T-Bone, grabbing him in a headlock. T-Bone strained and choked against the bigger con. Murdoch wasn't able to convert the SWAT Kat by biting him yet because his mandibles hadn't grown in, but he could break his neck! T-Bone strained and gurgled, eyes slowly closing.

Meanwhile, Razor deflected clumsy blows being thrown by Steven and the other Ci-Kat-A. A sideways chop to the neck sent the converted Megakat Biochemical Labs guard stumbling away to crash against a desk. Razor caught a punch thrown by the now freed scarred convict, using his momentum to swing him around, pinning his arm behind his back, twisting it. The scarred con gave a yowl of pain. As he did so, the con's heel nicked the flask of Katalyst 566, sending it spinning away into the middle of the room.

Razor slammed the converted prisoner against the wall, knocking him out. He then ducked as the fourth Ci-Kat-A swooped in, allowing him to smack into the wall. As the dazed kat-insect landed, turning, Razor delivered a double punch to his midsection, kicking him aside, where he remained on his feet, dazed, holding his head. Finally, Razor turned and jump-kicked the fourth convict, sending him staggering and stumbling uncontrollably across the room. He unintentionally kicked the still-spinning flask of Katalyst 566 back over to where Murdoch was attempting to choke T-Bone to death.

The fourth con himself smacked into the big window over the street, making Ann and Jonny in the chopper jerk back in surprise and snapping Street out of his reverie. Nevertheless, Jonny filmed the dazed prisoner slowly sliding down, face and palms pressed against the glass, face squished and scrunched as it pressed against the window. He thunked into a heap on the floor. Street looked down at the unconscious con, then turned to look at the chaos behind him, getting angry.

The flask of Katalyst 566 finally came to a halt over by T-Bone and Murdoch, the orange liquid inside sloshing.

Meanwhile, as Razor fought the fourth Ci-Kat-A, who had recovered enough to fight, the SWAT Kat noticed something was wrong. The Enforcer, Gray Taylor, wasn't firing his weapon and in fact hadn't budged from where he'd been standing. His back was to Razor.

"Hey!" he cried, exchanging blows with his opponent. "Why aren't you firing?"

He delivered a final punch to the Ci-Kat-A's face and he teetered and fell to lie to sprawled on the floor, then turned to find Gray standing turned around, holding his gun, head down, panting heavily. Suddenly he stiffened, raising his head and opening his eyes. They were green and insectoid!

"Oh, that's why..." said a shocked Razor.

With an insectile hiss, Gray raised his gun and fired at Razor, who leaped aside and up, onto the wall, as the laser blast continued on and hit the armored glass of the big lab window, splintering but not shattering it as it passed through it, leaving a little hole. The laser blast barely missed the tail of the news chopper, spooking Al.

"That's it," he said. "I'm moving us away from here."

Ordinarily one to argue with her pilot and insist on staying despite danger, Ann was weirded out by her little "moment" with Street. "A good idea!" she agreed.

The chopper banked away.

Back inside the lab, Murdoch grinned, close to killing T-Bone when a voice behind said "Hey!"

"Huh?" He turned and all he saw was an Enforcer-issue boot planted in his bug-eyed mug.

Felina kicked him off of T-Bone and he released the SWAT Kat, landing with a thud between the katalyst shelves. They rocked from the impact, jostling the flasks on them, but thankfully nothing fell off. Murdoch lay there breathing heavily, but didn't get up.

"Th-Thanks, Lieutenant..." said T-Bone, rubbing his throat.

"No problem," said Felina, she and King having retrieved their laser pistols in the meantime. They were both armed again.

Meanwhile, Razor ran along the wall, being shot at by Gray and Steven, the recovered guard having finally drawn his own sidearm. Obserbintg, T-Bone and Felina rushed to the rescue as Murdoch sat up almost robotically, frowning, then smiled, seeing both crucial flasks close at hand. He grabbed them.

Razor deftly dodged all the laser blasts, landing and sweeping Steven's legs out from under him. He cried out as he hit the floor and Razor kicked the gun from his hand, then turned and found Gray's gun barrel right at his forehead, cursing himself and waiting to feel the laser blast rip through his skull.

Rushing over with T-Bone, Felina gasped in horror, as did King.

"Taylor!" cried Felina.

"Not again!" said King.

Gray turned and glared at them, surprised, allowing Razor to grab the laser pistol and twist it out of the converted Enforcer's hand. Gray growled angrily. Razor punched him in the throat. Felina winced. King raised a shaky hand, trying to aim at the converted rookie.

"I can't get a clean shot," he said, anguished.

Suddenly there was a muted "Pew!" and Gray staggered back, clutching at his neck to to find a little feathered dart sticking out of his skin. After a moment, he wobbled and collapsed to the floor. The barefoot Dr. Belljar stood in the doorway holding a tranquilizer rifle, two spare darts clenched in his teeth. Hearing a roar, Razor turned and saw the huge scorpion scuttling towards them, abdomen up, tail uncurling to strike.

"Mini-Turboblades!" he yelled, firing.

The Turboblades sailed through the air, slicing off the scorpion's stinger. The creature shrieked piercingly. It batted at Razor with its claws, snapping and slicing at the air. Razor backpedaled, trying to fend the serrated claws off. Dr. Belljar took one of the spare darts out from between his teeth, loading it into the tranquilizer rifle. The scorpion's left claw lashed out, grabbing Razor's wrist, squeezing, crushing his Glovatrix.

"Aaghhh!" Razor screamed. "Hey! Let go, you overgrown...!"

"Pew!" Another dart sailed through the air and stuck in the scorpion's side between the armored plates of its back and lower belly. It growled, releasing Razor, who staggered back, clutching his wrist and inspecting his damaged Glovatrix. The scorpion's movements became lethargic, and after a moment, it lay down on the floor and ceased to move. Razor sighed in relief, giving Belljar a thumbs-up in thanks.

The various Ci-Kat-A were either recovering or freeing themselves and regrouping. The one with the mustache had even managed to wipe the tar off of his face, although some globs remained in his facial hair. Except for the unconscious Gray, they all converged on Street, surrounding him like bodyguards. With him standing at the head of the group, they looked like a street gang ready for a rumble.

"Now what?" asked Callie.

"Round two is what," replied T-Bone.

The SWAT Kats and Enforcers prepared for another go, when suddenly Murdoch came running into viewing, holding the flask of Super-Katalyst 566. Or, at least, that's what its label said. He held it up triumphantly.

"Street!" he cried happily.

"Oh, no, ya don't!" said T-Bone, taking aim with his Glovatrix. Suddenly Steven the guard jumped up and chomped onto his arm. "Yeeeeooouch!"

He punched Steven in the head, making him relinquish his hold, and the guard staggered over to where the other Ci-Kat-A were. T-Bone was panicking, rubbing his forearm where he was bitten. A grinning Murdoch handed the flask to Street. Hurrying, Dr. Belljar took the remaining dart from between his teeth and loaded the tranquilizer rifle again.

"Fortunately for you, SWAT Kats, I have more pressing matters than settling old scores," Street said.

Turning, he shriekd, making everyone except for the other Ci-Kat-A wince and cover their ears, blowing the armored panes of glass out of the winfow frames. Belljar dropped the tranq rifle. Leaping onto the sill, glass crunching under his feet, Street yelled over his shoulder.

"But believe me, that reckoning is coming... and sooner than you think!" To the other Ci-Kat-A, he said, "Let's go!"

Spreading his wings, he flew off. His ten underlings followed. The five who could fly gripped the five newly-converted kats under their arms and carried them as they zoomed off after Street. The SWAT Kats and Enforcers fired after them to no avail. Callie grabbed the dropped tranq rifle and took aim, but Street was by then too far out of range, too far ahead of the pack. She grimaced and lowered the rifle.

The flying group of very jubilant Ci-Kat-A passed by the hovering news chopper. An uneasy Ann, Jonny and Al watched them go past. The Ci-Kat-A paid them no mind save Street, who stopped, turned, using his rapidly-beating wings to hover in place like a grotesque hummingbird.

"Go on without with me," he said to the other Ci-Kat-A.

He then cautiously approached the hovering aircraft. Al's eyes widened, and Ann grabbed at his shirt, trying to find her voice as she watched the horrific parody of the once handsome scientist she flirted with once approaching them, trying to tell her pilot to get them out of them. Dutiful Jonny filmed with his camera, but he unbuckled his seatbelt, ready to leap to Ann and Al's defense if the need arose.

Street landed with delicate ease on the chopper's passenger side pontoon, the whirling rotor blades whipping his hair and antennae around. The helicopter lacked front doors, so he made one, tearing a hole in the fuselage one-handed to expose Ann sitting buckled into the front passenger seat. The reporter sat frozen with terror but also with morbid curiosity. As one would toss aside a wadded up piece of paper, Street flung the torn off section of away, and it went whirling off like a crooked Frisbee to who knew where.

With his free hand, he grabbed Ann's wrist in what at first she took to be a violent gesture, but soon turned tender. Ann dropped her microphone.

"D-Dr. Street..." Ann said, managing to find her voice.

"Ms. Gora," said Street, all schmooze, "I must apologize for my rudeness the last time we spoke. As I said at the time... I was busy. I hope you can forgive me."

Pretending to be filming, Jonny surreptitiously slid across the rear seat to Ann's side, meaning to open the sliding door there and intervene, but Street reacheed in over Ann's shoulder and punched the hapless cameraman with the knuckles of the hand holding the flask. The thick glass of the flask clunked off of Jonny's head and he was knocked backward, almost falling out of the helicopter. Although he didn't, his camera did; it flew out the open door on the other side, plummetted to the street, and smashed on the asphalt.

Back inside the chopper, as Jonny lay unconscious in back, Ann and Al frozen in fear, Street resumed turning on the "charm." "My apologies for that interruption," he said.

He moved to kiss (or bite?) Ann's hand. A scream was rising in her throat but couldn't quite seem to make it out as her delicate-looking hand came closer and closer to the deadly-looking mandibles. With her other hand, she managed to grab Street's shoulder and shove, knocking the converted MASA scientist off of the pontoon he was perched on. His buzzing wings prevented his falling and he kept ahold of the flask.

"Wasn't there" is ambiguous. It could mean she wasn't in Megakat City at all... or that she simply wasn't involved in the Ci-Kat-A incident.

And that line comes from fan script, anyway:

[i]The Doctors of Doom[/i] Fan Script wrote:
FELINA
Easy, Private. I know I wasn't there when this all went down but I can understand your anger. Nevertheless, we've got the element of surprise, so let's not spoil it.

And since it was written before New in Town, if anything, New in Town would contradict The Doctors of Doom, not the other way around.

Anyway, she was in Megakat City, but she was only a sergeant at the time and took part in neither the MASA or Megakat Tower operations, so she has no direct experience with the Ci-Kat-A, so what she tells King is true. (King, for his part, wasn't involved in the attack on MASA, but he did fly one of the choppers that took out the alien nest at Megakat Tower.)

"Steven?" Belljar smiled. "You're fine. He hasn't progressed far enough into his transformation to have developed the mandibles or the venom necessary for conversion."

T-Bone sighed in relief, looking down and noticing Belljar's bare feet. Hearing a cry of alarm from Callie, the SWAT Kats turned. The giant scorpion had gotten up. The sedative had worn off. Simultaneously, both SWAT Kats took aim with their Glovatrixes, before Razor growls, remembering his was broken, as T-Bone fired a weighted net which encircled and entrapped the huge arachnid. Felina and King fired knockout gas grenades from their sidearms, and Callie finished the creature off by firing the remaining dart from the tranquilizer gun. The scorpion thrashed a bit before the double dose of sleep agents did their work and it collapsed into a heap, entangled in the net.

"That ought to keep him out this time," Callie said with some satisfaction.

"Long enough to get him into one of the special holding cells upstairs," said Belljar. He glanced at the equally unconscious Gray Taylor. "And him, too. If you'll assist me?"

Felina and King helped Dr. Belljar get the oversized scorpion onto a gurney. Belljar wheeled it out of the trashed lab, Felina and King following, Felina carrying Gray's arms and King carrying his legs as they bore their fallen fellow Enforcer from the room. After they were gone and it was just Callie and the SWAT Kats, T-Bone noticed Callie's bare feet as he had Dr. Belljar's.

"How come you and the Doc--"

"Why is everyone asking about my--our feet?" Callie said, sighing. "We took our shoes off to climb an elevator cable to escape the Ci-Kat-A." She smiled at Razor. "A trick I learned from Razor here."

Razor smirked. T-Bone scowled.

"Anyway, I should probably go and oversee Corporal Taylor's transfer to the holding cells and talk to Dr. Belljar about what, if anything, can be done for him." She mumbled to herself, "And maybe find my shoes and my purse..."

She walked out. The SWAT Kats turned and resumed looking out the window.

"Now what...?" asked T-Bone.

"We leave it to the professionals for now, T-Bone. There's nothing else you and I can do here. We're not scientists, after all." He grumbled. "Besides, Burke and Murray are waiting for us at the park."

T-Bone grinned. "Yeah, where I'm gonna whip your tail."

"Fat chance!"

They left the room.

~*~

In Dr. Viper's lair in the Dead Forest, the ten Ci-Kat-A stood in a loose group, the mustached drone cleaning himself, licking his forearm and washing his face in an effort to free his facial hair from the remnants of the Tarpedo gunk.

Dr. Viper stood by the hollow tree stump cauldron, yelling at Street. "You foolsss!" he hissed. "You idiotic bugsss! How could you bungle such a sssimple mission?!"

He was extremely animated, tail lashing this way and that, waving his arms around. Dr. Street by contrast was the very picture of calm and composed. At least on the outside. His jerking antennae betrayed a slowly-boiling anger to match the contents of the stump cauldron bubbling beside them. He didn't like being talked to this way by his "colleague."

His eyes narrowed suspiciously, the mushroom monster was positioned over on the other side of the room, observing the proceedings closely, ready to strike if Viper needed him.

Street held up the flask. "In case you failed to noticed, we did manage to acquire your precious katalyst, Doctor," he buzzed in exhausted annoyance.

Viper snatched the flask from him. "And a good thing too! Or elssse--"

"Or else what?" Street interrupted him, stepping forward.

The other Ci-Kat-A tensed. The one with the mustache stopped washing himself. Remembering that he was outnumbered, Viper left the threat unfinished. Instead, he turned the topic to the "recent additions" to his ally's little bug-eyed entourage.

"And where did thessse six come from?"

"I told you I had to bite someone who worked there," replied Street.

"And them?" Viper jerked a thumb at the other five, fully transformed original drones.

Street clenched his fist. "All that remains of the original Ci-Kat-A, imprisoned for study. I had to free them! And besides, it's actually seven. We had to leave one of our newly-anointed brothers behind due to interference from--"

Viper cut him off. "Ssspare me your sssob storiesss, Ssstreet! The mission was sssupposed to be in and out without being detected!" He prodded the Ci-Kat-A doctor in the chest, eyes glowing, his anger returning despite his attempts to control his temper. "You've failed me! And if you hadn't gotten the katalyssst, I'd be even angrier than I am now!"

The other Ci-Kat-A relaxed, concluding that at this point Dr. Viper's outbursts were little more than toothless threats. They returned to near motionlessness except for the one with the mustache, who resumed cleaning himself. Dr. Street remained wary, however. His developing plan notwithstanding, he was cautious, and gave the nearby mushroom monster a sideways glance.

Uncorking the flask what he understandably thought was Super-Katalyst 566, Viper poured some of it into the hollowed out stump he was using was a mixing cauldron, then put the stopper back in with a smug look of satisfaction. The contents of the cauldron bubbled and boiled in a manner he didn't expect them to. His smug look slowly faded. Stroking his chin in thought, he watched the developing chemical reactions, then used an eyedropper to suck some of the brackish-looking liquid up.

Street tensed as Viper went to a potted Venus' flytrap on his worktable containing three fanged mouths on stems. He applied a drop of the liquid and stood back. He was shocked when the plant, twitching and growing, burst free of the pot, flying potting soil going everywhere, the mutated scientist gasping as the three stems separated into three distinct creatures. Their roots developed into spindly, hairy insect legs, and diseased-looking veined wings sprouted from their backs. Standing with mouth agape at these "Venus Trap Flies," Viper grabbed the flask of "Katalyst 566," looked at the label, then looked at Street.

He prodded at the label with his thumb, gasping at how easily it peeled away and fell off.

"Thissss isn't Katalyst 566! You-- You ssswitched the labelsss!"

If he expected Street to deny his treachery, he was surprised when the Ci-Kat-A scientist simply said, "Yes, we did."

With a ferocious snarl, Viper hurled the flask at Street, who ducked. The flask smashed through one of the dark, murky windows, splashing into the water of the swamp outside far below. Viper was beyond enraged, eyes glowing like yellow hot coals.

"You tricked me!" Pointing at Street and shrieking so fiercely his voice became hoarse and his throat hurt, he demanded, "Whaaaat issss iiiiiit??!?"

"Super-Katalyst 666!" Street said.

Viper was confused. "What? But that hasss nothing to do with--"

Street interrupted him. "The small, pathetic dreams of a mere Earth mutation?" he asked. It was his turn to be smug.

Viper reeled from this. His mushroom monster tensed, tentacles wriggling in anticipation, furious at his master's betrayal. He began waiting for an opportunity to attack.

"Super-Katalyst 666 will be better served as part of MY plan for a new breed of Ci-Kat-A!" Street declared, pointing a clawed finger at Viper, who was speechless. "And eventually the world!"

Pushing past a stupefied Viper, he went to the tree stump cauldron and gripped the edges, leaning in, looking at the bubbling contents happily.

"Thanks to you, I have all that I need to enact my new plan. To create a race of mega-insect servants loyal to me and my Ci-Kat-A brothers! I'll send them to create a distraction while I destroy the Megakat Nuclear Plant to irradiate the entire city!"

"That's the idea, you pitiful reptile!" said Street, whirling and pointing at him again. "It will provide an endless source of food for the new Ci-Kat-A race my queen will bear for me!"

With a roar, the mushroom monster attacked! But as per Street's plan, arranged before they'd returned to the swamp, the five original Ci-Kat-A who'd been freed from captivity opened their mouths and unleashed an ugly torrent of their sticky yellowish slime which splattered all over Dr. Viper's creature, knocking him back with the force of five firehoses. He ended up plastered to the wall, looking very worried and confused.

Satisfied that Dr. Viper's sole ally was taken care of, Street turned and grabbed the snakelike feline by the scrawny neck, lifting him up. "Your feeble-minded and simplistic creations are no match for the superior Ci-Kat-A race!"

Viper gagged, but managed a laugh. "Ha! Ha! You aren't even true Ci-Kat-A! You're jussst cheap imitationsss! All the REAL Ci-Kat-A are dead!"

That made Street angry, and he tightened his grip. Viper stopped laughing. "True," Street admitted, "but once I have my queen... the pure Ci-Kat-A race will be reborn!"

The evil green kat smirked. "Did you really think I'd ally myssself with you without firssst developing and injecting myssself with an antidote to your ssslave venom?"

Street's confusion quickly turned to anger. "I may not be able to bite you, Viper, but I can crush the life out of you!" He now gripped Viper's throat with both hands, intent on strangling Viper to death.

As the drones turned and rushed towards Viper, the evil biochemist leaped through the already partially broken window. He fell flailing into the murky water far below. The Ci-Kat-A went to the window and looked down, seeing only ripples and bubbles.

"Let him go!" Street said. The assembled Ci-Kat-A turned from the window to face their leader. "He can't stop us now! We have work to do!"

The mushroom monster, still stuck to the wall, grunted, straining against the muck holding him imprisoned, which had hardened into a resin-like substance. The Ci-Kat-A ignored him as no throat. Finally, he managed a lopsided smirk and turned into liquid, sliding free of his sticky bonds and dripping down the wall. As a green puddle, he oozed across the lab floor and down the stairs, escaping unnoticed.

Outside, Dr. Viper surfaced from the water, gasping, looking at his tree, now taken from him. He shook his fist. "You bug-eyed foolsss will regret betraying Dr. Viper!"

After a moment, his mushroom monster, returned to his solidified state, popped up beside him, just his eyes, ears and the top of his head showing. Viper patted him on the head affectionately. Turning, he began swimming away and the monster followed.

"I've got to get to Enforcer Headquartersss..." he told his creation.

He was very unhappy at the thought, as was the mushroom monster. Bubbles surfacing around the partially-submerged mutation indicated his underwater voice was voicing extreme disapproval of Viper's plan of action.